Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

Investments abound in the CPG and retail sector. Blue Bunny maker Wells Enterprise acquired Halo Top for an undisclosed sum to Wells Enterprise. UK startup Strong Roots received $18 million in funding to expand its frozen vegetable products into the U.S. Plant-based dairy maker Kite Hill has raised $15 million, bringing total funding to $80 million. Simbe has raised $26 million to deploy its inventory robot. Swiftly is launching its supermarket OS system with its $15.6 million round. Caper has raised $10 million to roll out its smart grocery carts to more locations.

In the realm of alternative meats, Kroger announced the launch of its own plant-based line. Novameat and Redefine Meat both received funding to develop and finalize their 3D printing meat platforms. Just Salad has just announced that it will be removing its beef offering and replacing it with Beyond Meat nationwide. Impossible Foods is set to release a ground “meat” product soon, launching in a city like Miami or Los Angeles.

Lastly, a new report found that natural foods and beverages grew 5 percent within the same three year period, reaching $47.2 billion in dollar volume. Organic food and beverages outpace the total market at 2.8 percent growth.

Check out our weekly round-up of last week’s top food startup, tech and innovation news below or peruse the full newsletter here.

Financial terms are undisclosed. While Eden Creamery was looking to sell Halo Top for the past couple of years for as much as $2b, Halo Top’s CEO showed little interest in the brand getting acquired by a multinational CPG company.

Just Salad’s new Beyond Beef Meatball will be available nationwide as a topping for wraps and bowls. Just Salad will become the first chain to eliminate beef entirely from its menu in favor of a plant-based alternative.

While overall food and beverage grew only 1.7% year over year, natural grew 5% within the same three year period, reaching $47.2b in dollar volume. Organic food and beverages outpace the total market at 2.8% growth.

While overall food and beverage grew only 1.7% year over year, natural grew 5% within the same three year period, reaching $47.2b in dollar volume. Organic food and beverages outpace the total market at 2.8% growth.

Over $1.45B was invested across 247 deals in 2018, according to the research in our second annual investment report produced in partnership with Ryan Willams. Check out the report for a deep dive into the investor and investment trends. We also share a complete list of deals and acquisitions.

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